While it still feels more like Indian Summer here, the holiday collections have been landing across my desk at a furious pace and one that never fails to get my heart a-racing, is from none other than CHANEL. Taking a different direction this year from the season’s traditional golds & reds, Lucia Pica (the brand’s Makeup Director) has drawn inspiration from an urban landscape to create the Collection Libre Synthetic de CHANEL, a grouping that juxtaposes light, texture and colour.

Today’s post focuses on the eyes — stay tuned for my upcoming post on the rest of the collection. By the way, I’m totally obsessed with the model’s look (below) and plan on wearing it on repeat. Slicked-back hair & black turtleneck included.

Architectonic Eyeshadow Palette, limited edition (CAN $70.00) | Housed in the brand’s iconic black lacquered casing, the five eyeshadows it holds are nestled within a mirrored insert. The innovative new texture combines the smoothness & almost fluid-like quality of a cream with the finish of a powder, offering not only excellent colour payoff but a superb lay down of all the shades. Alternating between matte & subtle shimmers, this colour harmony pays homage to the materials of a cityscape, perfectly rendered in makeup form.

Matte Midnight Blue – deep navy

Metallic Blue – steel blue

Platinum Grey – exactly that: platinum grey

Cement Grey – brown-based grey, matte

Mirror Grey – silvered grey

Displaying all the qualities I look for in a palette (excellent colour saturation, easy blendability, + wearable shades) the Architectonic Eyeshadow Palette goes a few steps further to also provide incredibly well crafted textures. The two matte shades provide a perfect counterpoint to the rest and both can be dialled up or down, depending on how deep you want to go (note: the navy is highly pigmented and needs a light hand), while the shimmery hues have just enough complexity to keep things interesting (without going overboard), laying down smoothly & without any fallout. Wear time over primer is spot-on, staying true and fade-free until removed.

Calligraphie 65 Hyperblack Longwear Intense Cream Eyeliner (CAN $40.00) | A cream eyeliner in an ultra-black shade that also comes with a portable angled brush. The texture is unlike any other cream eyeliner I’ve seen to date; dense yet incredibly easy to apply, long-wearing and apparently water-resistant (although I haven’t put it to that test … yet) and one that won’t crack and flake off once dry. Once applied, you can also add to the intensity without fear of disturbing your initial layer, a welcome bonus — while dry-down takes about a minute; once it’s set, it becomes almost budge-proof. I prefer using my own brushes for the job (the NARS #47 Angled Eyeliner Brush is my go-to), although the one included works surprisingly well, considering its tiny size.

Don’t get me wrong; I love seeing the more traditional-like hues that most brands release for their holiday collections, but even now & then I like having things shaken up as well and The Collection Libre Synthetic de CHANEL actually made me go “oooh” (I’m serious). The Architectonic Eyeshadow Palette manages to still stay within my neutral-loving comfort zone, but provides enough of a twist to amp things up. And while I may not have mastered the ART OF LINING (yes, it all deserves caps because props to those of you who can line without needing a billion do-overs), I’m proud to say that I’ve been doing a pretty decent job with the help of Calligraphie Hyperblack. Final verdict: both pieces are a total thumbs up and well worth investing in (heads up: the palette is limited edition).

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